SCB National Hall of Fame Classic 
St. Joseph, Missouri  •  Civic Arena

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6
(#21) Seattle Pacific vs. (#20) Alabama Huntsville, 11:00 a.m. PST (1 pm CT)
 
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7
(#21) Seattle Pacific vs. (#1) Northwest Missouri State, 3:30 p.m. PST (5:30 CT)
 
      • Webcast for both games (pay site):  https://themiaanetwork.com/mwsugriffons/
      • LiveStats for both games:  https://gogriffons.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
 
The 21st-ranked Seattle Pacific men's basketball team opens a challenging regular-season schedule with a tough trip to St. Joseph, Missouri. The Falcons (0-0) compete in the Small College Basketball National Hall of Fame Classic, opening the eight-team event versus No. 20 Alabama Huntsville on Saturday, Nov. 6 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time (1 p.m. Central) at Civic Arena. The Chargers (0-0) reached the NCAA Division II South Region championship game last season. On Sunday, Nov. 7 at 3:30 p.m. PST (5:30 CT) SPU encounters top-ranked and defending NCAA Division II national champion Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats (0-0) boast a 97-3 record over the past three seasons and won their last 43 neutral-site games. SPU has never before played either team. 
 
Notable
Sunday's clash with No. 1 Northwest Missouri State marks the Falcons first matchup with the nation's top-ranked team since they defeated BYU-Hawaii 78-72 on Dec. 5, 2009.

Quoting Coach Grant  Leep
"We're so honored to be part of the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame tournament. We're the first West Coast team invited to that prestigious event. To be a part of that, to be included with that caliber of team, we're really excited about it and we need to be ready to go. One of the things that we've really challenged our group with is, when you look at the last two years we haven't started very well. We went 0-4 in 2019-20 and then we started 0-2 last year before we kind of kicked it into gear. So, this is something for us that we need to come ready to go against that top-level competition."

HARRY CAVELL INTERVIEW

Falcons Fast Facts
• SPU was the most accurate NCAA D-II free shooting team in both 2020 (80.5%) and 2021 (84.2%).
 
• Divant'e Moffitt was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year and joined Harry Cavell and Shaw Anderson on the 15-man All-GNAC Preseason team.
 
• SPU used the same starting lineup every game in 2021 and was victorious in 10 of its final 11 outings.
 
• Shaw Anderson returns after missing last season. He was the 2020 GNAC Freshman of the Year after averaging 12.8 points on 55-percent shooting, including 56.3% accuracy on 3-pointers (58-103).
 
• Three Falcons have produced a 30-point game:  Divant'e Moffitt, Harry Cavell, & Shaw Anderson.
 
• Harry Cavell is the 11th player in SPU history to compile both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.
 
• Harry Cavell has 1,151 career points to rank No. 22 among all-time Falcons and collected 523 career rebounds to become the school's 16th 500-rebound player.
 
Dynamic Divant'e
Senior point guard Divant'e Moffitt topped SPU with 17.6 points and 5.2 assists per game last season. That assist figure ranked 28th nationally among NCAA Division II players. He notched two 30-point performances in 2021, doubling his career total to four. Moffitt erupted for 32 points versus Lewis-Clark State (Jan. 28) and 30 against Whitworth (Jan. 13). He was honored as a unanimous first-team All-GNAC selection in 2020. Moffitt started all 42 games during the last two seasons.
 
Scouting #20 Alabama Huntsville (0-0)
> The 20th-ranked Chargers posted a 15-4 record in 2021 and advanced to the round of 16 before losing in the South Region final.
 
> The top returning scorer for UAH is 6-foot-5 junior guard Max Shulman, who averaged 9.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.
 
> SPU and Alabama Huntsville have never before met in men's basketball.
 
Scouting #1 Northwest Missouri State (0-0)
> The top-ranked Bearcats are the defending NCAA Division II national champions, having defeated West Texas A&M 80-54 in the 2021 title game. They captured three of the last four national championships that were contested (2017, 2019, 2021) as there were no playoffs in 2020.
 
> NMSU posted a remarkable 97-3 record over the past three seasons.
 
> Northwest features 6-foot sophomore guard Trevor Hudgins who averaged 19.8 points and 4.2 assists en route to 2021 National Player of the Year honors.
 
> The Bearcats have won 43 straight games on neutral floors. It is the longest active win streak among all NCAA schools of any division. Their last loss on a neutral floor was a 76-72 setback on Nov. 13, 2015 vs. Upper Iowa in St. Joseph, Missouri.
 
> Sunday marks the first ever men's basketball meeting between SPU and the Bearcats.
 
2021 Season Review
The same five starters opened every game last season and all of them are back in 2021-22. The Falcons won their final five games en route to a 10-3 overall record against an abbreviated slate of opponents. Last season's schedule took place entirely from January through the first week of March and there was no GNAC season. The NCAA conducted playoffs in 2021, but SPU was not permitted to travel out of state so could not participate. Divant'e Moffitt led the team with 17.6 points and 5.2 assists per game while Harry Cavell scored at a 16.7-point clip with a team-high 7.2-rebound average.
 
 

2022 Season Preview
Seattle Pacific was a unanimous choice to win the 2022 Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship in the coaches poll released Oct. 15 and for good reason. All five starters return from last season's 10-3 team, including the team's top-10 point producers. The Falcons feature Preseason Player of the Year selection Divant'e Moffitt along with projected all-conference candidates Shaw Anderson and Harry Cavell. Moffitt, a 2020 All-West Region honoree, topped the team with 17.6 points and 5.2 assists per game last season. Cavell scored at a 16.7-point clip and led the Falcons with 7.2 rebounds in 2021. Anderson missed all last year after receiving the 2020 GNAC Freshman of the Year award. They are joined by returning starters at guard, Sharif Khan (9.9 ppg), Zack Paulsen (9.6), and center Mehdi El Mardi (7.6). While limited to eight games, forward Kelton Samore averaged 10.3 points when healthy. "We have so many returning players, 14 of them. They are just hungry to compete and play, and play in front of people again and be a part of what is means to be a basketball player at SPU and have that experience," said Coach Grant Leep.
 
Exhibition Recap
Shaw Anderson returned after a season's absence and led all scorers with 24 points on Oct. 30 for 21st-ranked Seattle Pacific which opened the campaign with a 76-65 home exhibition win over a Lincoln University team coached by legendary Seattle Sonics point guard Gary Payton, an NBA Hall of Famer. The Falcons reeled off 13 unanswered points to start the game. But the visitors trimmed that margin to two later in the first half. SPU led 37-31 at the break, but Lincoln again rallied, this time to draw even, at 42-42, on a basket by Tre Finch with 15:53 left to play. The Falcons netted the next eight points, four of them from Mehdi El Mardi, to gain a comfortable 50-42 margin that eventually grew to as many as 14 points. Anderson made 9 of 19 shots from the field, including 4-for-11 accuracy on 3-pointers. Divante'e Moffitt was the only other Falcon in double figures, with 14 points. El Mardi contributed seven points and a game-high nine rebounds to spark SPU's 43-39 edge on the boards. The coach's son, Julian Payton, paced the Oaklanders with 18 points.
 
 

Shaw Returns
Shaw Anderson, the 2020 GNAC Freshman of the Year, returns to the court after missing all last season. His return was triumphant, pouring in 24 points to lead all scorers in the 76-65 home exhibition victory over Lincoln (Calif.) University on Oct. 30. Anderson was a two-time GNAC Player of the Week (Jan. 6 & Jan. 13) in 2020. He averaged 12.8 points while shooting 55 percent from the field. The 6-foot-6 forward was even better outside the arc, nailing 56.3 percent of his 3-pointers (58 of 103). Anderson compiled a streak off 11 straight successful 3-pointers from Jan. 30 to Feb. 8, 2020. He netted a career-high 34 points at Western Oregon (Jan. 11, 2020). Anderson posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds vs. CWU on Feb. 29, 2020.
 
 

Coach Leep
The GNAC's 2020 Coach of the Year Grant Leep, 42, is in his sixth season directing the SPU men's basketball program after seven years as an assistant on the Falcons staff. He has an 83-45 career record. Leep coached the 2021 to a 10-3 record over a schedule abbreviated due to the COVID outbreak. The 2020 team's 22-7 record featured a 14-game winning streak. His Falcons won the 2020 GNAC regular-season championship and qualified for the cancelled NCAA West Regional as the No. 5 seed. Leep has strong basketball ties throughout the Northwest as an All-America player at Mount Vernon (Wash.) High School before lettering four years at Washington. Leep still owns the Huskies 3-point accuracy records for a season (52.7% in 2002) and career (42.9%). His coaching resumé includes stops at Eastern Washington and a pair of community colleges. SPU had a 165-51 (.764) record during his time as an assistant.
 
Brougham Pavilion Entry Policy
Fans are welcome to attend Seattle Pacific home games in person at Brougham Pavilion. In compliance with King County guidelines, spectators 12-years-of-age and older attending SPU athletic events will need to provide proof of full vaccination or present a negative COVID-19 test. Before purchasing or picking up tickets at venue Will Call windows, attendees will be required to show evidence of vaccination. Acceptable forms of proof include a CDC-issued Vaccination Record Card, a photo of the card, the Washington state myIRmobile.com app or a document from a health care provider. Those who cannot provide proof of vaccination may instead present documentation of a negative FDA-approved COVID-19 test administered by a professional and dated within 72 hours of the event. For additional details, please click on the SPU ATHLETICS ENTRY POLICY webpage. Mask wearing is mandatory at all times and spectators are encouraged to social distance when possible. Save the wait in line and obtain your SPU basketball tickets in advance by purchasing them online the SPU TICKETS webpage.